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// Keep Calm 
// Story: The Green Room 
// by Toodle Flip 
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Inside a tree, a small filly dreams of adventure. She dreams of dodging death, running through jungles, and finding the treasure. Whispering in her sleep, sometimes yelling she stays there. Ginger Snap lies in equilibrium on a branch in the tree, but with her dreaming came a change to that equilibrium. Attempting to roll onto her back, she slides off the branch.

An eye cracked open, pleading for it to end. Ginger Snap screamed as she fell, falling into several branches. The colors whirred by her face, and the reached out, trying to slow or stop her descent. Ginger could not even think, only acting on instinct since she was disturbed from her slumber and dumped into a deadly situation. 

Her body fell onto a steep hill and she began to roll. Still panicking, she tried to stop by forcing all of her legs out. Sliding a few more feet, she came to rest just before cliff’s edge. Getting up, she looked at her proximity to the cliff and screamed, backing up from it as fast as she could thinking all the while, I’ve had enough of cliffs today!

Taking a look around, she attempted to peer deeper into the Everfree, but light was scarce and only darkness, with the occasional speck of light painted the canvas of the forest’s floor. However, to the little filly’s eyes, these specks of light grew into something else. Pairs of eyes, glowing yellow with hate and malice slowly formed along the forest’s edge. 

Doing as any filly would do, she panicked. She ran screaming from the forest until her senses told her that the cliff was just as bad, and swerved 90 degrees running along the side of the cliff. The adrenalin pumped through her as she could begin to hear howls, and cries, and shadows twisted into the form of monsters. For Ginger, the nightmare seemed to go on forever, and was all too real. The hill began to decline, and she could not stop herself. Her hat flew off into the forest, carried off by the wind that was renewed again by the chilly mountaintop, moaning as it drifted through the forest, driving the filly’s fear more.

Ginger closed her eyes at that point, only waiting for it all to end. It was a strange sight for all the animals of the forest, predator and prey alike, stopping to notice a filly rolling down the hill. As the filly passed, they resumed their lives trying to survive in the Everfree. Ginger eventually reaches the bottom of the hill, where a stench unlike anything she had encountered wafted through the air, and assaulted her.

Having just finished falling for the second time that day, Ginger laid there, trying to ignore the horrible stench that seemed to be coming from in front of her. She tried to think of when the others would find her, if they would. She could still hear things, soft whispers, but that was ignored for fear of her sanity breaking. Eventually deciding she has to know where she is, she tries to look at her surroundings.

Ginger forced her head up and almost immediately regretted it. Ahead of her was a bog unlike anything she had ever seen. It was soggy, filthy, and filled with who knows what. The trees seemed to be rubbery, and there was barely any ground to be seen. Most of it was water, and any rough patches of land seemed to be only comprised o mud. Looking back behind her, she no longer saw the eyes, or heard the howls, instead seeing that it was instead a nice forest, with light shining down from the treetops. It was quiet, with the occasional sound of the wind rustling the leaves on the forest floor. 

Ginger tried to collect herself, and act as a Filly Scout should. Alright, what do I remember from the wilderness survival course? I know there are seven steps to surviving. The first is… What is it? I know it has something to do with panicking… I know! It was keep calm. She looks at her dirtied sash, and her lack of a cap. I know I haven’t been doing that well. I should calm myself. I know the forest is dangerous, but I have much more of a chance in here than in the bog. I remember Pinkie telling the Scouts that things like her pet alligator Gummy live there. Only, they have teeth and are much larger. Plus, I heard from Snips and Snails that a Hydra lives in the bog! I think I am much better off here in the Everfree… I never thought I would say that.

Marking a spot on the ground, she backs into the forest, looking out for any strange animals or predators. She bumps into a tree, and she jumps, screaming again. I really need to watch where I am going. Keeping calm is the only way to make sure predators don’t find me. But it means it will be harder for the rescue party to find me otherwise.

Ginger kicks the dirt with her hoof, and collects her surroundings. There are several trees, all types that she cannot identify, but she labels it as simply being “Everfree trees” She speaks softly, calming her nerves, “I need to keep calm. I need to keep calm…”

A howling noise pierces the forest yet again. Her eyes widen to extreme proportions, her ears swivel, looking for the source of the noise. “I need to keep calm, I need to keep calm, or at least, keep calm while running away!” Near the verge of panicking again, she runs, her mind making noises seem like dangers. She slows down, and the howling, and the hooting, and the roars dimmed and sputtered out once she collected herself and slowed to a trot. 

Her escapade was not without consequence though, as she was covered in dirt, scratches, and bruises. Alright, I have completed the first step. I am now calm, and can carry the list out effectively. Now all I need to do is think about these scratches…